


Liminal Space

by momoe



Category: Death Note (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Canon Compliant, Depression, Eventual Smut, F/M, First Time, Fix-It, Romance, Self-Insert, Slow Burn, until it's not
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-24
Updated: 2019-11-18
Packaged: 2020-09-25 10:48:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20375515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/momoe/pseuds/momoe
Summary: "Say, L... If shinigami exist, do you suppose things like fate could be real as well?"Lyla had grown tired of her dull life. She'd landed a work-study job at a reputable university, and she knew she should have been content, but things felt as if they'd come to a standstill. When she met him, Lyla didn't trust Ryuga one bit. In fact, she thought he was delusional, but she was willing to humor him if only for a bit of amusement. Lyla quickly realizes that he isn't just some nut job and there's much more to his claims than she ever thought possible. Consequently, she lands herself in the middle of the Kira investigation.The Task Force isn't enough, so L seeks help in other places. He finds said help in one of Raito's professors, a young graduate student teaching English at To-Oh. Growing attached to her certainly had never been part of the plan. In the beginning, the thought had never so much as crossed his mind. Lyla was meant to be just another tool to aid in the Kira investigation. However, in light of discovering the existence of shinigami, his growing affection doesn't seem so strange.If gods of death exist, perhaps his heart does as well.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Been rewatching Death Note and had the urge to write this. The beginning of this story will largely be canon compliant, but from the eyes of an original character. I use Lyla and Raira interchangeably because the latter is how Japanese speakers would say her name.

**April 5, 2004**

Lyla remembered perfectly the first time she saw him standing on the auditorium stage waiting to give his speech at the entrance ceremony. Even then she knew he was different form everyone else. He stood stark in comparison to those around him, especially the pristine young man standing beside him. Yagami Raito looked perfect from head to toe, and carried himself with an air of superiority. Hideki Ryuga on the other hand looked like he couldn’t care less about what society thought of him. At least that was what Lyla’s first thought of him was. Those two were like two sides to the same coin, she remembered thinking as she watched the pair.  


A change was what she told herself she needed after graduating from her home university. That’s exactly what Lyla got, along with a bubble of seclusion in a new country. Living in Japan had given her the opportunity to experience new things, and comfortably keep others at a distance. As with all things, the newness had worn off after a few months, and the distance at which she could keep others shortened. Once again she was left itching for change the same as she’d been before she left home. Would she ever be content with anything, she wondered? Probably not. 

A year had passed since she’d moved to Japan. When the university was on break she spent her time traveling, despite her family begging her to come home to visit. Lyla didn’t want to go home, she wanted to experience new things that made her feel. Summer break was over too soon, the only tangible evidence Lyla had left of her adventures were postcards and enamel pins from her various destinations. 

Every morning was the same. Lyla woke at around 6 a.m. and lugged herself out of bed to get ready. She took the same path to the train station, the one that went by the convenient store that she stopped by sometimes. The train ride to To-Oh University took 20 minutes, and when she was lucky she got a seat in the corner. At 7:30 she had her breakfast at the café by the station; a coffee with cream and whatever pastry she decided on for that day. There was some comfort to be had in the monotony, but she often felt like she was wasting her time. Pointless, it all seemed so terrible pointless. Couldn’t she be doing something more worthwhile with her life? 

‘Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology’ 

The sign read both in Japanese and English, the latter tacked on near the bottom in smaller font. Lyla had been lucky enough to land a job here as and ESL teacher, something to supplement her income while she was working on her masters in linguistic anthropology. She enjoyed it well enough. Most of her students were fairly well advanced with their English, and it made her job that much easier. The courses she took were difficult at times, given that they were taught in her second language, but her Japanese had improved significantly in the last year. 

“How was your break Raira?” one of her coworkers, Eun-Ae, called from her cubicle. The language department shared a room partitioned off into cubicles off as their office spaces. 

“It was good. I finally got around to visiting Osaka.” Lyla hung up her blazer on the coat rack and headed to her desk. 

“You didn’t go home over break?” Eun-Ae asked, she was a petite Korean woman with long hair dyed an auburn hue. She wasn’t ugly, but she wasn’t necessarily pretty either. Plain was a good way to describe her. Lyla wasn’t sure she’d ever seen her with makeup on or with her hair in anything other than a bun. It made her look older than she was. 

“No, I might go home for Christmas though.” She said that last year too, and in reality she had no desire to visit home. Why going on a fourteen-hour plane ride just to be forced to be around people she didn’t want to talk to when she got to her destination. “You went home for break didn’t you? How was Seoul?” 

It was always like this at work. They’d have small talk because they felt obligated to, but they never spoke outside of the university. Lyla didn’t particularly mind though. 

“It was great, I almost didn’t want to leave. I already miss my fiancé.” Eun-Ae said in a dreamy tone. 

“This is your last semester isn’t it? Then you’re moving back to Seoul and getting married?” 

“Yep.” She stated and held up a wedding planner excitedly. “Counting down the days.” 

This was the start of Lyla’s second years here at To-Oh, and she hadn’t even begun to think of what would come after for her, but it certainly wasn’t marriage. A Ph.D. perhaps? Doubtful, she was already burnt out with school as it was, and she still had a year left. 

“The entrance ceremony is starting soon; do you want to walk with me?” 

Lyla’s gaze flickered up from the computer screen to where Eun-Ae had her head poked around her cubicle then down to her watch. “It’s still a bit early…” 

“Not if you want to get good seats.” 

“True, just let me finish up this email first.”

It didn’t take long, it was simply conforming a meeting time with the rest of the language staff. Lyla hit send and logged off of the computer. 

“I heard there were two students making the entrance speech this year.” Eun-Ae rolled her chair out of the way as she spoke so Lyla could get by. 

“Two? Did they tie scores?” It was strange, but not impossible. 

“You could say that. Get this, they both had perfect scores.” Lyla turned to give the woman and incredulous look as she shrugged on her blazer. 

“No kidding? A perfect score on the entrance exam is almost unheard of, but two in the same pool of students?” 

“That’s what I said!” 

The two walked the rest of the way to the auditorium in almost complete silence, an occasional comment made here and there. 

“Oh, he’s handsome!” Eun-Ae whispered. “The other one though, does he even realize where he is?” she said distastefully. 

Lyla shrugged, he was definitely good looking, there was no use in denying that. “Ew, he’s a little young do you think.” She said, her attention drifted to the man at his side and she could only be perplexed. Yagami Raito and Hideki Ryuga. Those two were complete opposites of each other in every way imaginable as far as she could tell from here. 

“Come on, you’re only what? 20, 21?” 

“22.” Lyla said, keeping her gaze forward. “My birthdays coming up though.” 

“So, what? What’s five years on the grand scheme of things? Keep being so picky and you’ll never find a boyfriend much less a husband.” 

Lyla cut her gaze at her co-worker, and Eun-Ae merely giggled.

“Who said I care anything about getting married?” 

“I was just kidding, no need to get so serious. Really though, have you dated at all the entire time you’ve been here?” 

“Nope, I don’t have time for it.” This wasn’t exactly a lie. She was busy with work and school, and what little free time she had Lyla usually spent in solitude. If there was one thing she wasn’t about to do that was sacrificing her alone time to see some guy. 

“You’d think someone would have gotten him to at least brush his hair or put on a button up. Look at that shirt! It’s all stretched out.” Eun-Ae said with a look of disgust. 

This was the one thing Lyla didn’t like about her, she was terribly judgmental. 

“He aced the entrance exam. With smarts like that he probably gets away with more than most people. I can’t say I blame him. I certainly wouldn’t be wearing this stuffy outfit if I had any other choice.” Lyla motioned towards her pencil skirt and blouse to make a point. “It’d be nice to be able to afford not caring what other people thought of me.”

“You have a point, but still-“ 

A man sitting in the row in front of theirs turned his head over his shoulder and shot them a glance. “Ladies, quiet.” He hissed in a whisper with his brows furrowed.

Eun-Ae stifled a laugh with her hand when he turned away. “Ladies, quiet.” She mouthed and rolled her eyes. Lyla shook her head, a faint smile tweaking at her lips as she turned her attention back to the stage. 

The more she watched this Hideki Ryuga, the more Lyla began to think there was a bit more to it that simple disregard to social norms. He had a strange gait and poor posture, then there was the odd way he held the paper with only his thumb and forefinger and the emotionless tone to his voice. It wasn’t that this guy didn’t care about social norms, but rather he seemed all together unaware. Socially inept was a good way to describe him.


	2. Chance Encounter

**April 7, 2004**

Late. She was running very late. The day was doomed from the start, and it was only the second day of classes. First it had been the spilled coffee on her kitchen floor and her blouse that hadn’t completely dried the night before. Lyla furiously mopped up the mess and uttered a string of curses under her breath in the process. She took a hairdryer to the shirt, her gaze shifting to the clock ever so often. It was just going to have to do as it, she told herself as she slid it over her shoulders and buttoned it up. Lyla pulled a sweater overtop then toed on her shoes and shouldered her bag in the entryway. ‘I can still make it as long as I don’t stop for breakfast.’ she thought as she spared herself on last glance in the mirror and tried in vain to smooth out the bangs of her wavy bob. The terrible humidity in Japan did not agree well her hair in the slightest. 

Breakfast, the mere though made her stomach growl painfully. Food would have to wait until lunch. Lyla hurried down the stairs and out her building. Only when she was outside did she realize she’d left her cellphone. There went another five minutes. The forgotten cellphone led to her missing her usual train, the next wouldn’t arrive for another fifteen minutes. 

What a grand way to start the semester, she thought distastefully. 

Finally, after what seemed like ages the announcement was made. There was still time to make it, just as long as she didn’t have anymore hiccups. The train at this time was always packed, but Lyla squeezed in anyways and curled in on herself to make herself as small as possible. One hand squeezed at the handle, the other tapped against her thigh impatiently. It was chilly outside, but she felt sweaty and anxious. 

“To-Oh University next stop.” 

A sigh of relief escaped her when she heard that, and Lyla pushed through to the exit. Her pace was brisk as she made her way into the university station. A pang of longing shot through her at the sight of the café she frequented. There was also the displeasure of breaking her routine to be head. Lyla was looking down at her class roster when she collided with someone sending the contents in her hands flying. 

“Ah!” she gasped as she dropped down to her knees to pick up the papers. A hand darted out first, and she retracted her own as her gaze drifted up. Hideki Ryuga, one of the two students to speak at the entrance ceremony. Up close like this, Lyla could tell he wasn’t entirely Japanese. Actually, he looked more European. He wore the same outfit as yesterday and there were a deep set of bag's under his eyes. 

Lyla stood, watching him expectantly for a moment but his gaze was trained on her papers held inches from his face with only his forefinger and thumb. From afar she’d thought him strange enough, but in close proximity he seemed even more bizarre, impossibly so. What was he doing inspecting them so closely? Did he intend to hold them for ransom until he received a proper apology?

“Sumimasen” She said regretfully, hoping he would get the point and give her the. Only then did he really look at her with almost impossibly wide eyes. It was a little jarring the way he looked at her actually, with eyes that felt like the bore into her soul. It made her feel small, exposed even. Glances rarely did that, and it was discomforting to say the least. After what felt like an impossibly long time, he nodded and extended his arm to relinquish the papers to her. 

“Arigatou gozaimasu.” 

Lyla didn’t wait for a response before taking the papers and hurrying off down the hall for her classroom with only three minutes to spare. 

“Good morning class.” She said as she looked at the faces of her students. It was a relatively small class, but that was to be expected. The business English courses were the most difficult and typically a bit sparse. “I’m Ms. Keene. I look forward to teaching you this semester….” Lyla turned from where she’d written her name on the blackboard and walked to the center of the room. 

“I’ll ask that you only use English while in my classroom, you’ll learn more through immersion. If any time during the semester you have questions or need extra help, feel free to visit me during office hours. All of that information’s in the syllabus being passed around.” 

Lyla could see a few of her students exchange glances at that. It was fun letting them think she couldn’t understand Japanese well, she always got the most unbiased feedback that way. Without fail Lyla would hear some interesting stories she was certainly not meant to be privy to either. 

“I won’t take roll every class, but I will the next few sessions just to see who’s here and who’s not. Please say here, when I call your name.” There were always a handful of students to drop her course or transfer in, and doing things this way helped to get the names and faces straight. 

“Shoto Minami” 

“Here.” 

“Takahide Keiji”

“Here.” 

“Yagami Raito.” Lyla’s brow raised at that. The one from the ceremony, it would be interesting to see how he performed in class.

“Here.” 

Lyla wondered briefly if he’d meet up to expectations, but with those test scores she couldn’t begin to imagine how he wouldn’t. 

“I know it’s the first day, but for our first assignment I just want to write an introduction to me about yourself. Tell me whatever you’d like. Hobbies, what you did over break, your plans for the future, anything you’d like to share with me.”  
_______

Lyla munched on her sandwich as she scrolled idly through the news. Kira was making more and more headlines on even American news outlets now, and it didn’t seem the police were any closer the catching them. Well, they seemed to be just as prolific as ever at least. Lyla had been keeping up with the case ever since Lind. L Taylor died of a massive heart attack on live television. Before that moment Lyla had chalked it up to coincidence, there had to be a reasonable cause right? Now she wasn’t so sure. It shouldn’t be possible to kill someone without being in their presence, and yet that seemed to be exactly what was happening. 

The light suddenly flicked off, and Lyla jerked a bit. It was dark save for the light from her computer screen. “Hey, I’m still in here!” she called out as she rolled backwards a few feet and stuck her head out of the cubicle.

“Oh! Sorry. It’s so late I didn’t realize anyone else was still in here.” Alexei, the Russian professor said as the light came back on. He, like her was a work-study student. He’d joined the department last semester, and if she could remember correctly he was from Moscow. 

“I can wait until you’re ready if you want me to walk you to the station.” He suggested. 

“Thanks for the offer, but I’m going to be here for a while, and I don’t want to keep you.” 

“You sure? I’d feel bad letting you walk alone.” 

“Crimes down remember.” 

“Right, well, be careful. I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Only then did Lyla’s gaze flicker to the time, ‘8:24’. She’d been reading all evening and grading papers, and hadn’t even noticed the time was getting away from her. A groan escaped her lips as she leaned back in her chair and slipped her glasses off. This was going to be a long semester, she thought as she pinched the bridge of her nose. 

It wasn’t long after that she started yawning, and despite having more to work on, Lyla decided to call it quits for the night.  
_______

Annoyance was his initial reaction upon being bumped into, but that quickly shifted into something more akin to idle curiosity. The woman was the last thing he noticed, his eyes glued to the papers she’d dropped as they fluttered to the ground. L reached out to snatch it up before she had the chance. He thought he’d seen a familiar name on the class roster for ‘Business English’. Ah, it seemed he had. Near the bottom ‘Yagami Raito’ was romanized along with the rest of the names on the list. 

"Sumimasen.” A soft voice finally drew him from his stupor, and he looks away from the paper to the woman in belonged to. His wide eyes raked over her briefly. She was young, his age if not younger. European descent, but he couldn’t discern whether she was British or American. Considering what she was teaching, it had to have been one of the two. After a pregnant silence L extended his hand, the papers held up with only his forefinger and thumb.

"Arigatou gozaimasu.” The woman said before hurrying off down the hallway.

L craned his head over his shoulder and his gaze trailed after her. The gears were moving in his head as he lifted a thumb to his lips and chewed thoughtfully. He’d been considering bringing third parties into the case, but L hadn’t been sure up until that moment how he might orchestrate something like that without it being obvious to Raito. What person would be more unassuming that one of his professors, given that she was willing to cooperate that is. 

‘Now just what was her name? It was written on the paper too…’ he chewed on his thumb and he shuffled on down the hall and headed for the cafeteria intent on getting some cake. ‘Raira Kīn… Lyla Keene.’ He translated with ease in his head. 

L pulled out his cellphone just as the name came to him and sent Watari a quick text. 

‘Run background check on Lyla Keene. Nationality unknown. Occupation professor at To-Oh university. Expedite results.’ 

The flip phone clicked shut, and he shoved it in his pocket. Now for some sweets while he waited for Raito to get out of class. 

**April 8, 2004 **

“Anything of interest Ryuzaki?” Watari asked from where he was slicing cake. 

“Indeed, I think this woman could be of use to use.” 

L nibbled on his finger as he read over the contents of her background check. Lyla Keene, 22 years of age and an exchange student from America. She’d been accepted into a work-study program at To-Oh teaching English. Her undergraduate degree was in Asian Religions and Cultures and Cultural Anthropology, and she was receiving her masters in linguistic anthropology. 

“Her background in social sciences could prove to be rather useful in spying on Yagami Raito.” Watari said agreeably as he looked over L’s shoulder at the documents. 

“I think so as well.” He slurped at his coffee. 

“Do you think it will endanger her?” 

“Significantly less so than the rest of us on the task force. Should Raito truly be Kira, he can’t kill her without condemning himself, and if she dies I’ll know without certainty that he is Kira.” 

Watari nodded. "It's a calculated risk." 

L hummed, only half listening. "One I'm willing to take." he said not taking his eyes from the computer monitor.

**April 9, 2004 **

It was the man from before. Hideki Ryuga, she’d recognize that mix of poor posture, dark circles and pale skin anywhere. It all made him stick out rather obviously. Not to mention he always wore the same frumpy outfit. He looked like he rarely saw the light of day, and he probably didn’t. She was coming across him frequently as of late it seemed. An odd coincidence, but Lyla tried not to think anything of it. 

Lyla avoided his intense gaze awkwardly, but when she looked back up he was still staring at her with his unblinking, unwavering gaze. It was disconcerting to say the least. Great, he was a creepy no lifer who had nothing better to do than to follow women around. This was just her luck. 

“Excuse me, could I have a moment?” 

Lyla turned back in his direction and raised a brow. Well this was certainly forward for a guy like him. His type usually turned to a stuttering mess when they attempted to talk to a woman. 

“Ah, wakarimasen… sumimasen.” She said hoping her feigned ignorance of the Japanese language would be enough to deter him. She'd said very little during their last encounter as well, so he had no way of knowing either way. 

“In that case we can speak in English.” He said plainly with not so much as a hint of an accent. There was, however, a slight lilt to his voice, and while it was familiar she couldn't discern it. 

A sigh escaped Lyla’s lips, and she pulled out the single earbud and stuffed them in her jacket pocket. 

“Alright, but if you’re going to ask me for my number or something, don’t bother. I don’t give it out to students.” She stirred some creamer into her coffee as she spoke. 

He was seemingly unperturbed, and even if he was it hadn’t been expressed on his face. “No, I’m here to ask about one of your students. Yagami Raito.” His voice was blank and matter of fact. There was no tact or discretion, but somehow that didn't surprise her, nor did it exactly bother her either. Lyla much preferred someone being direct over them beating around the bush. The only thing that bothered her was being interrupted this early in the morning. 

“I’m afraid I can’t help you with that either.” Lyla said as she pushed her black wide-rimmed glasses up the bridge of her nose. Did he really just interrupt her breakfast to ask her about one of her students? A female student she could maybe begin to understand, but Yagami Raito-

It only took a few moments before it dawned on her. “Oh, I see how it is. You two gave the commencement speech together. So that’s what this is, a little rivalry, hm?” 

“I suppose you could say that.” He replied almost cryptically. Lyla expected him to elaborate further, but he didn’t. What seemed like an uncomfortably long silence passed between them, and it was clear he wasn't about to go out of his way to explain.

"Alright... Well, one thing is for certain. Your English is leagues better than his, so you have that.” 

“I lived in England for most of my childhood.” 

So, he was European, and the lilt she heard in his voice was a British accent. No, rather it was just part of it.

“Interesting, you don’t sound like it. Then again, you don’t really have a placeable accent at all…” she trailed off thoughtfully. “Ah, sorry. I study linguistics, so I listen for that sort of thing.” Lyla added almost sheepishly. 

“I know.” Ryuga said rather frankly through a mouthful of cake. 

Lyla gave him a queer look. “Okay…” He could have looked her up on the school website, she assured herself, but it was still a bit off putting to hear him admit it so openly. 

“Yagami-san is under investigation. I wanted to ask you to keep an eye on him, perhaps try to get close to him.”  
Ryuga said it so seriously, but Lyla couldn’t help but to burst out into a fit of laughter. “And what, you’re some sort of private investigator? Funny, really funny.” 

“Technically, yes.” Ryuga’s he said seriously, his face unwavering yet, his gaze still trained on her with that same blank stare. 

Lyla quirked a brow and rolled her eyes, if he thought she was this gullible he had another thing coming. “Okay, sure.” She started as she took another sip of her coffee. It was getting cold, she thought, annoyed that he’d taken up so much of her morning quiet. “Quid pro quo.” Lyla said simply, deciding she’d humor him out of nothing but simple curiosity. She could have sworn she saw his lips quirk up the faintest bit. 

“Quid pro quo hm?” he said as he stabbed a bite of cake. “Please do continue.” 

“What can I expect to get in return? And what are you investigating Yagami-san for anyways?” 

As far as she could tell, he was a model student, perfect grades, good manners, and a tidy appearance to boot. 

“What would you want out of it? For now, it’s best that I don’t say.” 

“See what you can come up with… make me an offer I can’t refuse.” Lyla smirked. “Though I can’t possibly know what to look for unless you tell me.” 

“You’re an anthropologist aren’t you?” Lyla nodded, wondering where he was going with that. “I merely want your objective observational skills.” 

Lyla glanced at her watch, it was almost time for her to get to the classroom. 

“Alright, why not. I’ll bite.” She said as she finished off the last of her croissant. “Let’s say I do happen to see anything suspicious, just how am I supposed to get into contact with you?” 

“I will be in touch.” 

So this hadn’t been some elaborate ruse to get her contact information? Lyla was grateful for that, but this somehow felt stranger no matter what angle she looked at it from. 

“Right…” Lyla began as she stood and gathered her trash. “I should be heading to class,” she shrugged her messenger bag over her shoulder. “I guess I should probably introduce myself, Lyla Keene. I'm sure you knew that already ready though, huh?” She stuck out her hand politely, and he stared at it for so long she almost withdrew it. 

“Hideki Ryuga.” He said before giving her what was quietly possibly the limpest handshake she’d ever had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed the first full chapter! My plan is to explore L's more... morally ambiguous side in this and his occasional disregard of others as a means to an end. Right now he isn't particularly preoccupied with Lyla's safety, but he also doesn't see her as being at risk. Like he said, if Light is Kira, killing her would criminalize him. I hope you guys liked the developments overall, the next chapter will be Matsuda centric.


	3. Aliases

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I hope this chapter isn't too terribly slow. I'm trying to progress things without glossing over important meetings and details as Lyla is meeting more of the main characters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry for the long delay in updates, life got a little crazy there for a while. I hope those of you that commented and left kudos are still interested! Thanks for reading.
> 
> Please note I am by no means fluent in Japanese, however, I have studied it for two years now and have spent some time abroad. I thought it was important to include the language barriers that come with being in a new country because it’s realistic (and I’m a huge linguistics nerd irl, it’s actually what I’m studying in college). If you’d rather me omit this in future chapters, just let me know and I can gloss over them. I have included a key to refer to though. 
> 
> ライラ キーン / Raira Kīn / Lyla Keene 
> 
> kirei / beautiful or pretty 
> 
> kirai / hate

**April 12, 2004 **

I’ll be in touch my ass, Lyla thought offhandedly as she made her way back to her office. She wasn’t sure why she was so anxious to hear from Ryuga again, the strange guy that he was, but somehow during their brief interactions he’d managed to arouse her curiosity. Then again, he’d spoke to her on Friday, and it was only now Monday. Patience was not one of her virtues though, and she’d been anxious to see what came of this. Stupid, she reprimanded herself in her head, her lips turning into a frown. She was stupid for letting her thoughts be so invested in this when he was more than likely just crazy. 

Lyla was still somewhere away in her thoughts when she pushed open the door to her shared office space. 

“There you are!” Eun-Ae’s sudden voice made her jump. She was always quick to startle, especially when she was lost in her head. 

“Jesus, you scared me.” Lyla breathed as she held a hand over her chest as if to still her rapidly beating heart. 

Eun-Ae rolled her eyes. “I work here too you know.” The other woman sighed. “Anyways, I thought you didn’t have time for dating?” she said teasingly in English and winked. 

Lyla’s brows went askew. “What are you talking about?” she asked, suspicion clear in her tone. “Oh, don’t play coy with me. He’s cute too, doesn’t seem like your type though.” Eun-Ae smirked as she inclined her head towards Lyla’s cubicle. Could it be him? Certainly he wouldn't be so bold as to come to her office- Scratch that, he definitely would be.

“No, really I don-“ 

Eun-Ae shook her head. “No need to make excuses for me. Anyways, I’m headed home. See you tomorrow.” She bounded out the door as she spoke, not leaving time for a response much to Lyla’s annoyance. 

Lyla rolled her eyes and turned to her cubicle to see an unfamiliar man emerging with a sheepish grin on his face. Slim brows went askew in confusion. This definitely wasn’t Ryuga, and Eun-Ae was right, he was handsome. The man looked young, probably around her age with dark hair and kind eyes. Lyla tried to place him in her head, but she couldn’t remember having ever seen him before. 

“I’m sorry about all that…” Lyla began as she stepped closer to him, hoping he hadn't understood her conversation with Eun-Ae. “Can I help you with something?” 

“Don’t worry about it” he said, his gaze darting about the room. “And yes, but it would probably be best if we spoke somewhere more private.” the stranger insisted. 

“No offense or anything, but I’m not too keen on going off somewhere private with someone I don’t know.” 

“Oh… right.” The man chuckled, his eyes crinkling as he rubbed the back of his head with one hand, and fished around the pocket of his blazer with the other. Lyla’s brows furrowed a bit at what he retrieved, a badge.  
‘Taro Matsui…’ it read. So, he was a police officer. Well shit, maybe Ryuga wasn’t a nutter after all. That was a big fat maybe.

“Does this have to do with Hideki Ryuaga?” she finally asked after a pregnant silence. 

Matsui nodded. “Alright then, I don’t have all night though.” It was getting late, and she was ready to go home. Lyla gathered her things from her office area, shoving them haphazardly into her messenger bag. That really bothered her, but she didn't want to keep him waiting while she painstakingly organized her things. When she was done, Lyla inclined her head towards the door "Lead the way." she said, and followed after him down the hall. 

It was relatively empty, but she still spoke quietly so that only he could hear. “You know, I thought he was full of it when he told me he was a PI.” 

The man at her side chuckled. It was a warm pleasant sound that somehow made her feel a bit at ease. This was just all happening so fast, and it had her hackles raised. 

“I had a hard time believing it myself.” Matsui shuffled through the briefcase at his side as they walked. “I know you wouldn’t think it just by looking at him, but he really is brilliant.” He added as he held out some papers to Lyla. 

“You'll want to read over these before we carry on.” 

Lyla’s gaze scanned over the paperwork. It was a nondisclosure agreement, one with very serious terms. “This is the real deal isn’t it?” 

“If you don’t want to you can still back out. You’re young and this is dangerous, there’s no reason for him to bring you on.” 

“You’re young too.” She pointed out as she glanced over at him. Ryuga had really come through with the contract. The promise of a permanent position or letters of recommendation after the fact, whichever came first. A work visa wasn’t presently necessary, but if it became an issue in the future they would remedy that as well. There was also the money in it, bi-weekly pay that was more than generous. What she made teaching was enough to live on, but this kind of money would greatly supplement her income. In return all she had to do was help out with the case as needed, which would primarily involve spying on Yagami Raito, and to keep her lips zipped about what went on. Like anyone would believe her if she told them anyways. 

“Let’s get on with it then.” She’d finally looked back up to Mastui. 

“Are you sure?” There was a look of surprise on his face when Lyla nodded. 

“Alright, my cars just over there.” He said pointing to the small nearby lot. 

Lyla didn’t make a habit of getting into stranger’s cars, even taxis made her uncomfortable, but this guy was a police officer so she’d make an exception just this once. Matsui handed her a pen once they were behind closed doors and out of ear shot. 

‘Lyla Keene’ she wrote along the signature line in her usual messy, cursive scrawl. 

Matsui held it up in front of his face eyes squint trying to decipher it. Lyla couldn’t help the smile that tweaked at her lips, he was kind of cute in a puppy dog sort of way. 

The young woman gestured for him to hand the paperwork back to her. Beneath her signature she wrote her name out in katakana so he could read it. 

‘ライラ キーン’

She handed it back to him, and he flashed her a smile that reached his eyes. 

“A pretty name…” he trailed off. 

“Huh…” Lyla muttered. Briefly she wondered if she’d heard him properly, but she was almost certain he said kirei instead of kirai. It made her cheeks heat up, and Lyla didn’t have to look to know her face was red hot. 

“Oh, uh. Nothing.” He stumbled over his words trying to brush the compliment aside. 

Matsui cleared his throat. “That reminds me…” he began as he fished something from his pocket and held it out towards her. Lyla eyed the items curiously for a moment before he face lit up. Was that? It couldn’t be… She grabbed it and flipped it open. 

“I get a badge?” she asked incredulously and excited look on her face. It said intern, but it was still a badge. ‘Lydia Croft’ the name read, and she raised a brow. Croft, a faux anthropologist, real funny. There was a flip phone as well. 

When Lyla looked back up at Mastsui and noticed his amused expression, a sheepish look fell across her face. “I’m sorry, I should be taking this more seriously, but I can’t help but feel a bit…” 

“Excited?” 

“Yeah…” 

“That’s alright, I was too at first. The chief scolded me for it.” He said with an indignant sigh as he recalled his scolding. 

Lyla let out a genuine laugh at that. It only reaffirmed her previous thoughts of his likeness to a puppy. 

“The cellphone is for work only. You’ll receive a text when I leave here, that will be the contact you reach out to with any updates.”

She nodded, heart beating wildly in her chest. This was getting to be so much more serious than she ever imagined it to be. “And what’s with the alias.” 

“We suspect that Kira only needs a name and a face to kill.” 

“Well, Raito already knows my name… Are you really humoring that idea? It’s impossible...” she pointed out. 

“Right, but we aren’t certain he’s Kira. The badge is just in case you get in a sticky situation during the investigation. Not that we expect that to happen, but just in case we want you to be prepared.” He explained. “We thought so as well until Lind L. Taylor was killed on live television.” 

“So, it’s true then, that Kira can kill remotely. In any case, even if Raito is Kira, I doubt he’d kill one of his professors. That would be too condemning.” 

“I personally don’t think Raito-kun is Kira, but still be careful.” 

Lyla raised a brow. “Isn’t that exactly what a mass murderer would want you to think?” 

“Well… yes.” 

Lyla leaned back in the car seat, her body shifting in Matsui’s direction. “So just who is Ryuga anyways? He told me he was a PI, but to organize something on this level. To get together documents like these in a matter of days and to be able to offer me a contract like this?” Hell, from the way it looked he was using the police like puppets, and there was only one person she could think of that could possibly be able to pull strings like that. 

“He’s just a private investigator the police enlisted to go undercover here at the university to keep an eye on Raito.” To keep an eye on Raito… That certainly made sense considering where Ryuga was the first time she saw him. Still it all seemed a bit… fishy. 

“Right, it’s not like a guy like that would be L or something.” 

Lyla was about to abandon the absurd notion until she saw the brief look of shock flash across Matsui’s face followed by uncomfortable laughter. 

“That would be ridiculous wouldn’t it?” 

A strange as his reaction seemed, Lyla decided to write it off. The police were working with L, that much was public knowledge, but no one had ever seen L. Certainly he wouldn’t choose this case, as serious as it was to reveal himself. Especially not to the suspect who was thought to be able to kill with nothing more than a name and face. 

“Yeah, I feel stupid for even considering it.” Lyla agreed. “Anyways, it’s getting late. I should probably get going.” 

“Would you like me to give you a ride?” 

She glanced at her watch. It was already ‘6:55’ and she was tired, so why not. 

“Are you sure?” Lyla asked skeptically, she didn’t want him to do it just because he felt obligated. 

“I don’t mind.” He assured her. 

The car ride was quiet, and very little was said during the drive to her apartment. 

“Taro Matsui isn’t your name, is it?” 

“I- Uh…” he stuttered. 

Lyla looked over at him, and his gaze flickered briefly from the road to her and then back to the road once more. Matsui was silent for a moment his brow furrowed in thought, but when they stopped at a red light he turned towards her. 

“No, it’s not… I’m sure you can understand why, but the whole team is using aliases for this case.” 

“I see…” Lyla trailed off. While she understood, it hardly seemed fair for him to know her real name when she wasn’t privy to his. 

Perhaps Matsui caught on to her discomfort, or maybe he wasn’t good at keeping secrets. Either way Lyla hadn’t expected him to offer up his name. “I’m really not supposed to tell you, but I see no reason why I shouldn’t tell you.” He began, his attention going back to the road when the light changed to green. “My name’s Touta Matsuda.” 

“My lips are sealed.” She assured him. 

Moments after they pulled up to her apartment complex. 

“This is me…” Lyla trailed up as she opened up the door and grabbed for her bag. 

“I look forward to working with you Raira.” 

Lyla smiled and nodded politely. “You as well, Matsuda.” 

As promised, minutes after they parted she received a text from an unknown number in English. Whoever it was it certainly wasn’t Matsuda.

Firstly, I’d like to thank you for accepting the offer to collaborate with the task force on the Kira investigation. I apologize for not meeting with you face to face, but due to the precarious nature of the case I thought it best that my identity remain hidden. 

A slim brow raised in confusion. Was this the chief that Matsui spoke of or someone else? 

At the end of this message is the info for an email address. After reading this, I ask that you login and promptly change the password. There will be a single email, attached will be a case file. You would be wise to familiarize yourself with the details. Report back to this number with any findings and log any interactions you have with Yagami Raito. From here on out you should proceed with caution. 

-L 

Green eyes went wide and Lyla could only stare at the tiny phone screen in shock, her mouth agape. Was this really L?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you guys think about Lyla and Matsuda? Who is she going to fall for? Who do you want her to be romantically involved with? I'd love to hear your thoughts!


End file.
